First Men In The Moon
H.G. Wells' Astounding Adventure In Dynamation!
H.G. Wells' fantastic account of life on the moon is vividly brought to the screen by special effects master Ray Harryhausen in this amazing sci-fi epic featuring extraterrestrial creatures. The film begins with a team of United Nations landing on the Moon, only to find that a Victorian-era British flag. Upon returning to Earth, the astronauts are both confused and intrigued by a man who claims he, his fiancée and a scientist journeyed to the moon 65 years ago and were attacked by "Selenites," grotesque, human-like ant forms that live in immense crystal caverns. Now it's up to the U.N. team to attempt a lunar landing that could be more horrifying than ever believed possible.
Member Reviews
Not One of Harryhausen's Best Films - Dudley_Do-Right
This is British film with typical British pacing (i.e. it's monotonously slow). The cast isn't very good and the direction of Nathan Juran is only adequate.
The director, Nathan Juran, actually directed a number of Harryhausen films including the exceptional "7th Voyage of Sinbad". He is one of the few directors who helmed mostly sci-fi films and sci-fi TV productions -- including Irwin Allen's Lost In Space, The Time Tunnel, Land of the Giants, and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.Good Ray Harryhausen production - Coconut_Willy
Although it was probably not the case at the time, one has to look at this now as a B-movie from the '60s, sci-fi style. I'm sure that for the time it was a big production but the storyline is so ridiculous that it can't be taken seriously. Mind you, there is some depth to it with a few very clear social commentaries but overall, it ends up being funnier than anything else. The cast is not so good doing a rather annoying acting job with the dialogue and the characters they were given. What is really good here are the special effects. I can't say that I am a huge fan of Harryhausen as looking at his work today makes it look quite dated but I was really impressed by the quality of the animation in this one. It still looks old but maybe not as much as with other films where the stop action is very obvious. If this is something you can appreciate or if you are a big fan of Harryhausen, this one is certainly worth the watch.Didn't age too well... - Haring
As an avid aficionado of classic films -including sci-fi- I was very much looking forward to see this one. It seemed to have all the right ingredients: an eccentric inventor, an unlikely space ship, creepy alien life forms, juicy animated special effects by the genius Ray Harryhausen, and most of all: a sweet, innocent story line.
But I was wrong. The characters have less depth than a tea cup, the acting is hammy and stiff, the story ridiculously predictable and moving at a sleepy snail's pace, and the "climatic" ending feels tacked-on like an afterthought.
The only thing in the film's favour is its gorgeous production design, a feast for sore eyes. Other than that, I'm afraid this is one film that didn't pass the test of time too well; author H.G. Wells would be embarrassed.
Member Reviews
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Not One of Harryhausen's Best Films - Dudley_Do-Right
This is British film with typical British pacing (i.e. it's monotonously slow). The cast isn't very good and the direction of Nathan Juran is only adequate.
The director, Nathan Juran, actually directed a number of Harryhausen films including the ...Good Ray Harryhausen production - Coconut_Willy
Although it was probably not the case at the time, one has to look at this now as a B-movie from the '60s, sci-fi style. I'm sure that for the time it was a big production but the storyline is so ridiculous that it can't be taken seriously. Mind you, there ...Didn't age too well... - Haring
As an avid aficionado of classic films -including sci-fi- I was very much looking forward to see this one. It seemed to have all the right ingredients: an eccentric inventor, an unlikely space ship, creepy alien life forms, juicy animated special effects by ...